Never Forget
by R.G.B.The.Duckie
Summary: Tonks was a special girl. For her mother, losing her was like losing a part of her heart. Andromeda looks back on Tonks life. The good times, and the bad.


The woman walks slowly across the graveyard, a small child cradled in her arms. Curls of brown hair flow down her back, swaying in the gentle breeze. She stops when she arrives at a headstone. A single tear escapes; she doesn't make any attempt to wipe it away. Instead she watches as it falls to the ground, disappearing into the lush grass beneath her feet. It had been a month; a whole thirty days she had spent mourning, but she doesn't feel different. She still can't believe that she was gone. She still expects to walk into the kitchen and see her there, ransacking her fridge. But then, maybe no one ever really gets over losing someone so special. And there was no doubt about it; her Dora had been special.

Andromeda remembers the birth of her daughter clearly. Everyone tells you that giving birth is one of the most painful moments of your life, and they aren't lying. She had screamed and clutched onto Ted's hand tightly. He had kept talking to her through the whole ordeal. She hadn't known what he was saying, but knowing that he was there, that was enough to keep her going. There had been pain, but when she saw Dora for the first time, with her little toes and red face; Andromeda knew it had all been worth it.

Growing up, Dora had been adventuresome. She was always the first to try something new, no matter how dangerous or stupid it was. She never understood how much it had scared her mother. How as she watched her five year old daughter climb up the highest tree in the park, Andromeda would silently pray that she wouldn't fall; though her prayers were rarely answered. Dora, was clumsy, there was no way around that fact. Everyone knew it, and yet it didn't stop her. She wanted to see it all, and do it all. Nothing was going to stop her from doing what she wanted. That was something Dora had understood right from the start; living for the moment.

Dora grew from a girl to a woman, but her priorities didn't change. She became an Auror, ready to fight, ready to help people. She was going to do something worth doing. She remained the same person through it all, until she met Remus Lupin. She had never been in love before; she had come home and told her mum about her school crushes, but they were just that, crushes. As soon as Andromeda saw the look that spread its way across her face, when she talked about him, or thought about him; Andromeda knew that her little girl, Nymphadora, was in love. She had held her daughter as she shed many tears over the man she had fallen for. He is such an idiot, she would say, why can't he understand that I don't care what he is; I care about who he is? She would hold her and tell her everything was going to be okay. She knew that Dora was a fighter; she wasn't going to let something as petty as his pride stop her from loving him.

She had gone to her wedding of course. Ted and she were two of the few who went. It was a small, simple wedding. Despite her protests, Dora wore the classic white dress, made by her mother, but it wasn't the dress that made the young bride look so radiant that day; it was the smile that was plastered across her face that made her look so stunning. The groom shared the same grin as they stood facing each other. They exchanged vows, their eyes locked, taking in every single word the other said. As the Minister made it official, they sealed the marriage with a kiss.

She was finally happy. Nymphadora, or Tonks as everyone called her, was living her dream. She was married to a man she was deeply in love with, she was expecting a baby; life was good. There may have been a war raging, but that barely bothered her. She had full faith in the people who were fighting for her. For a while, she could ignore the problems that were going on outside the walls of the house. She could curl up on the couch next to Remus and enjoy every second she spent with him. For a few months, her life was how she had hoped it would turn out. And then they got the news.

They were listening to Potterwatch, like they did every night. She had been only half listening. The baby was kicking for the first time, and she was frantically scurrying around the room; getting everyone to feel the gentle kicking against her bloated stomach. She froze when she heard the words she had been dreading. Ted Tonks, Dead. It felt as if someone had reached in and grabbed her heart. Her knees gave way beneath her, but Remus was there, holding her up. She grabbed hold of him, and lent against his chest. Her father, they had found him. He had been hiding from the ministry, because of the blood that ran through his veins. Something he had no control over. They had found him, and they had killed him. She couldn't breathe, she needed air so badly and yet she couldn't will herself to take a breath. The world was spinning.

"Breathe," a voice told her. She opened her mouth and let the oxygen flood her lungs. Her vision cleared. People were surrounding her. She let the emotions take over. She let the tears come. In a way, her father's death made Dora grow stronger. She despised the people who had murdered him, and she was ready for a fight.

The Final Battle; that is what they nicknamed the Battle of Hogwarts. It was when Harry Potter got rid of Voldemort for good. But for Dora, it was her Final Battle. She had originally stayed at home, looking after newly born Teddy, but she had gone crazy sitting and waiting; not knowing what was happing. She left Andromeda to look after Teddy, and made her way to the Hog's Head; ready to help in any way she could. She wasn't there for her death. Andromeda wasn't there to witness her daughter being killed, but she'd heard the stories countless times. She had been looking for Remus; someone had told her that he was fighting Dolohov. She had found him in the midst of a duel. She had wanted to help, but Bellatrix had stopped her. She had fought her, but Bellatrix was stronger. They told her that she had died a hero's death. She had died trying to make the world a better place for her child. Andromeda's own sister had cast the spell that took her life. Dora's own aunt was the one to kill her. It wasn't the way things were meant to happen. It wasn't fair.

Andromeda looks down at the headstone in front of her.

_Nymphadora Lupin (nee Tonks)_

_1973-1998_

_Loving Daughter, Wife and Mother,_

_Gone but not forgotten._

She had lost her husband, her daughter and countless other members of her family. It would never be the same without them around, she knows that. But she also knows that they would have wanted her to be happy, and she doesn't only have herself to think about. She was now the caregiver to the little boy asleep in her arms. She had to be strong; if not for herself, for her grandson. Maybe you never really forget someone so special. But you have to live on, because you know that's what they would have wanted. You know they would have wanted you to be happy. Her little girl had taught her so much in the short time she had been alive. She had taught her to appreciate the little things, to live for the moments, to never give up.

She pulls out two bunches of flowers. Lilies; they had been Dora's favourite. The first she lays on her grave, and the second on the one beside; the grave of Remus Lupin. She had insisted that they be buried next to each other. She knows that is what Dora would have wanted; to have her body next to the man she loved. Remus hadn't been a bad man, despite what the wizarding community had thought about him. Dora had loved him, she had really loved him. True love doesn't come around often, and when you find it you need to grab hold of it, and never let go.

Andromeda can feel the tears coming again. They well up in her eyes and streak down her checks. In time, she would be able to think about Dora and not dissolve into tears. In time, she would think about her and smile. For she truly had been a special person; someone you could never really forget.

**Authors Note: This is written for the Unreal Tournament in the TriWriters Tournament Challenge. Thanks to JacksonFrost who very kindly Beta Read it for me. Reviews would be loved :) **


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